Michael Stanley
The Ride
Fri 4/12 @ 9PM
Sat 4/13 @ 9PM
Fri 4/19 @ 9PM
Sat 4/20 @ 9PM
When the Michael Stanley Band broke up in 1987, its leader was far from finished with music. He just seemed to get more productive as time went on, cranking out seven studio albums in the decade between 2000 and 2009.
In 2011, his wife Denise Skinner, who also ran his label Line Level, was diagnosed with cancer and died that September. The following year, he released The Hang, which exorcised some of that pain.
Now less than a year later, he’s back with The Ride, showing that, although he may not headline Blossom Music Center anymore like he did in the ’80s, music is just not ever going to let go of him.
There’s nothing in the 14 songs — 12 originals and two covers — on The Ride that will surprise anyone the least bit aware of Stanley’s work. He’s got his style, and he’s sticking to it. And his reliable cast of musicians — including two MSB veterans drummer Tom Dobeck who has been with him since 1974 and keyboardist Bob Pelander who joined in 1975 — adds to that comfortable familiarity. Vocalist Jennifer Lee — whether she’s singing backup or dueting with Stanley — has become so integral to his sound, she’s virtually as iconic as he is.
Working within melodies, arrangements, and lyrics themes he’s used for years, Stanley infuses the songs — which mostly deal with heartbreak and romantic disappointment — with sincerity. If the lyrics are generic in some cases, they’re also universal and relatable.
The disc kicks off with one of the strongest tracks, the blazingly funky “Shiny Things.” It’s a natural crowd-rouser. His cover of Frankie Miller and Andy Frazier’s “A Fool in Love” becomes another standard, funky Michael Stanley rocker.
In fact, there’s a heavy funk/R&B feel underlying the entire project, in its copious use of organ, sax, funk guitar, and soul-style backup vocals. It’s there on the midtempo “Take That Ride,” and the pensive “Justine,” the slow, grinding funk of “Anything Goes” and “Making Beds,” and on “Shining Through” which sounds like one of Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes’ big showstoppers.
Two tracks which reveal the most about why Stanley’s music wears so well are his loving, deliberate take on the BeeGees’ “To Love Somebody” and the album’s closing track “When the Smoke Finally Clears.” While the sentiments in these tunes are routine, there’s something in his inflections and his phrasing that’s pitch-perfect in terms of emotional sincerity. You feel as if he has lived what he sings.
Stanley and his band the Resonators are back at the Tangier Cabaret for his annual spring run. The first two of the four shows is sold out; if you’re quick, maybe you can grab a ticket to one of the two second-weekend shows. Tickets are $45-$90. (The higher prices include dinner.)
If you’re not quick enough, Stanley and the Resonators are playing their first-ever show at Cain Park in Cleveland Heights on Saturday August 10. Watch Cain Park’s website for ticket info.
http://www.michaelstanley.com/
Akron, OH 44302